The statements in this section merely provide background information related to the present disclosure and may not constitute prior art.
Chemical and biological sensors based on microresonantors have been considered viable alternatives to modern sensing systems for some time, undoubtedly because they consume less power and space than their macroscale counterparts. Traditionally, these systems track resonance shifts in single-degree-of-freedom oscillators induced by mass or stiffness changes. As these changes are caused by local bonding, stress stiffening, or a similar chemical-mechanical process, the resonance shifts, in turn, indicate the presence of a given analyte. Existing sensors require the measurement of the response of an individual resonator for the detection of a specific compound, or a class of compounds. Large sensor arrays composed of isolated microresonators can be used to broaden detection capabilities, but the addition of the attendant electronics (arising from a larger number of system outputs) adds to the complexity of such sensor systems.
Existing methods of resonant microscale sensing detect a single target analyte by measuring induced resonance shifts in a single, isolated microresonator, which features independent actuation and sensing mechanisms. Multiple analytes can be detected with arrays of microresonators that have either collective or independent actuation; however, current techniques require independent sensing mechanisms for each resonator or a single sensing mechanism which operates in a scanning mode to recursively measure the response of each individual resonator. The first approach limits the number of analytes that can be detected and the second yields a relatively complex system with multiple inputs and outputs.